¹⁶ “Command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant to come up out of the Jordan.”

¹⁹ Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple, and there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail.^(A)

³ and commanded the people, “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God being carried by the Levitical priests, then you shall set out from your place. Follow it,^{(A) 4} so that you may know the way you should go, for you have not passed this way before. Yet there shall be a space between you and it, a distance of about two thousand cubits; do not come any nearer to it.” ⁵ Then Joshua said to the people, “Sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.”^{(B) 6} To the priests Joshua said, “Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass on in front of the people.” So they took up the ark of the covenant and went in front of the people.

¹⁶ You shall put the covenant that I am giving you into the ark.^(A)

¹⁷ “Then you shall make a cover of pure gold; two cubits and a half shall be its length and a cubit and a half its width.^{(B) 18} You shall make two cherubim of gold; you shall make them of hammered work at the two ends of the cover. ¹⁹ Make one cherub at one end and one cherub at the other; of one piece with the cover you shall make the cherubim at its two ends. ²⁰ The cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the cover with their wings. They shall face one to another; the faces of the cherubim shall be turned toward the cover.^{(C) 21} You shall put the cover on the top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the covenant that I am giving you.^{(D) 22} There I will meet with you, and from above the cover, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the covenant, I will tell you all that I am commanding you for the Israelites.^(E)